According to the anonymous dev, things started heading south with the development of The Bureau: XCOM Declassified and after the game performed poorly, the blame was apparently apportioned to 2K Marin and they were closed as a result.

After developing Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, which also had a lukewarm reception, 2K Australia was shut down, with 2K citing development costs as an issue.

“The Borderlands Pre-Sequel was developed with a skeleton team of 40 people at 2K Australia in just 18 months, and went on to sell 1.7 million units, plus significant DLC sales. [2K’s official reason for closing the studio was that it was] ‘no longer economical for 2K to run game development operations in Australia’. You mean no longer economical to run a team of 40 developers paid significantly less than their American counterparts, who just sold 1.7 million units after an 18 month production cycle? That makes precisely zero sense, but we were told not to worry about it ‘because developers just don’t understand how the games business works.’

“2K HQ was very keen on relocating staff to the more expensive Novato office to add to their 150+ person strong ‘Hanger 13’ studio,” the post continues.

“Hanger 13 spent many years and many 10s of millions of dollars creating ‘Mafia III’ which has recently tanked in reviews and has no hope of ever making its money back (it needs to sell ~8 million full price units to make up for its expenses, it has so far sold well under 1 million units).”

“[XCOM tanked because it was] the only title where 2K HQ felt obliged to get their hands dirty with the development. They turned the product around several times for reboots, and completely took creative control out of the hands of the developers…Perhaps this is why Mafia III and Evolve also lost so much money. 2K HQ doesn’t seem to be afraid to try out their artistic streak — even if it costs the shareholders hundreds of millions of dollars, costs the jobs of hundreds of developers, and costs the reputation of 2K as an employer.”

The post is a pretty scathing account of the goings-on at 2K over the last ten years, but the authenticity has been called into question by Bioshock Infinite’s level designer Steve Lee who tweeted “Discussion and observations among many ex-Irrationals indicate this is very very likely to be fake, fyi.”

Meanwhile, 3D Realms founder and Duke Nukem creator George Broussard shared the post on his Twitter account, saying, “2K is a really shitty company. Someday I will write up how evil they were to us.”

It’s a long read and the writer certainly sounds hacked off to say the least, but as long as they remain anonymous you should stay skeptical.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2016/10/31/2k-meddling-killed-mafia-3-evolve-and-irrational-claims-ex-dev/feed/0Bioshock: The Collection does not let you stream from your PS4 or Xbox Onehttps://www.vg247.com/2016/09/16/bioshock-the-collection-no-streaming/
https://www.vg247.com/2016/09/16/bioshock-the-collection-no-streaming/#respondFri, 16 Sep 2016 02:09:10 +0000https://www.vg247.com/?p=600833You currently cannot stream the updated versions of the three Bioshock games from your consoles, for reasons that are unclear.

Bioshock: The Collection, which released this week for PS4 and Xbox One, contains all three Bioshock games and all of their DLC, bolstered with updated graphics. By all accounts, these are the definitive editions of these games.

However, if you were planning on streaming your gameplay experience, you’re out of luck: neither console version supports the ability to stream any of the games.

“If you’re playing BioShock: The Collection, there’s a good chance you’d like to stream your adventures in Rapture and/or Columbia”, the post reads.

“Unfortunately, streaming BioShock: The Collection isn’t an option right now. We will update this article should this situation change.”

It’s not unusual for consoles to suspend streams during important cutscenes or request that streamers omit certain scenes or stop at a certain point, but this is rather strange, especially since Let’s Play videos were part of the collection’s marketing campaign.

It remains to be seen whether this was an intentional decision, something that can or will be overturned, or whether 2K will explain the reasoning behind it at all.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2016/09/16/bioshock-the-collection-no-streaming/feed/0Bioshock: The Collection officially revealed, out this Septemberhttps://www.vg247.com/2016/06/30/bioshock-remastered-collection-release-date-details/
https://www.vg247.com/2016/06/30/bioshock-remastered-collection-release-date-details/#respondThu, 30 Jun 2016 12:34:32 +0000https://www.vg247.com/?p=5906822K has officially announced Bioshock: The Collection.

The Bioshock collection has seen a few leaks over the past few months. Initially appearing on more thanone gaming board, references to this collection were later spotted on 2K’s website earlier.

Now, Bioshock: The Collection has been officially confirmed. The package includes the original Bioshock, Bioshock 2, as well as Bioshock: Infinite. Due out September 13 on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, development work is being done by Blind Squirrel Games.

All three games are remastered, and all single-player add-ons are included. It’ll be available digitally and at retail for $60 (digital only for PC).

In addition, for PC, the included version of Infinite will not be getting a visual update, as 2K says “it already meets current-gen console standards and runs smoothly on high visual settings.” Bioshock 2’s multiplayer, unsurprisingly, is not part of this.

Outside of the games themselves, the package comes with various bits of extra content, including a never-before-seen video series called ‘Director’s Commentary: Imagining BioShock’. This production features commentary from creative director Ken Levine, and animation lead Shawn Robertson.

The original Bioshock also includes a virtual museum called ‘Museum of Orphaned Concepts’. It contains various bits of concepts that didn’t make it into the game. Challenge rooms is another extra add-on that’s part of the game. It takes place outside the main story and feature puzzles and will earn you new achievements.

BioShock creator Ken Levine presented this talk shortly after Irrational Games was gutted, scaling down from traditional triple-A development to something more intimate.

Levine discusses something called “narrative Lego”, which he intends to leverage in his future projects. I’m pretty sure it represents the sum total of what we know about whatever the remaining members of the BioShock Infinite team are up to.

It was widely reported at the time, but its release on GDC’s YouTube channel makes it easily accessible to everyone. If you’re a big Levine fan you should probably partake.

The GDC YouTube is full of great videos, by the way, and it’s fantastic to be able to watch these videos for free, even a few years later. And outside of the proprietary video player (ugh) on the GDC Vault website.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2016/02/11/bioshock-creators-narrative-lego-talk-added-to-gdcs-youtube-vault/feed/0Bioshock has been delisted from the App Store [UPDATE]https://www.vg247.com/2015/09/24/bioshock-has-been-delisted-from-the-app-store/
https://www.vg247.com/2015/09/24/bioshock-has-been-delisted-from-the-app-store/#respondThu, 24 Sep 2015 06:20:09 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=549721It appears the removal of BioShock from the App Store was due to the game not being compatible with iOS v8.4 and higher, but 2K Games is working on a fix.

The firm said in a statement to Eurogamer, its previous comment to TouchArcade stating “we don’t currently have this game for mobile gaming anymore,” was in error.

“2K recently provided inaccurate information to customers surrounding removal of BioShock for iOS from the App Store,” the publisher told EG. “BioShock is currently incompatible with iOS versions 8.4 and higher, and as such, is temporarily removed for purchase from the App Store. 2K is fixing the compatibility issue, and when resolved, will place BioShock back on the App Store for purchase.

“Customers who already own BioShock may continue playing the game with iOS version 8.3 or earlier. 2K regrets the initial customer service error and looks forward to delivering an updated version of BioShock for iOS in the near future.”

Original story is below.

Original Story

Right now, it’s impossible to download Bioshock onto an iOS device – even if you’ve bought it previously.

The game is now completely unavailable, though. It has been delisted, meaning that even if you have paid for and downloaded the game previously, you won’t be able to download it again.

The only way to access Bioshock’s iOS port now is to play it on a device that already has the game downloaded onto it, and should it be deleted from those devices it cannot be recovered.

The iOS version of Bioshock was not well received by critics or fans, but considering the $19 price tag those who purchased it are likely to be annoyed that the game was delisted instead of being updated.

This thread in the Touch Arcade forum has more information. Unhappy customers are being advised by 2K Support to seek a refund from Apple.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2015/09/24/bioshock-has-been-delisted-from-the-app-store/feed/0BioShock creator’s team has made “huge inroads” on Narrative Legos prototypehttps://www.vg247.com/2014/12/16/bioshock-creators-team-has-made-huge-inroads-on-narrative-legos-prototype/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/12/16/bioshock-creators-team-has-made-huge-inroads-on-narrative-legos-prototype/#respondTue, 16 Dec 2014 22:10:40 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=505560BioShock creator Ken Levine has made a few tantalising comments regarding the project he exited traditional triple-A development to pursue.

So far we’re heard very little about what this new team is up to, with Levine saying only that he wants to work on different kinds of projects than the big triple-A extravaganzas of the BioShock series.

But in a new Medium post discussing Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Levine gave us a better idea of what it was attracted him to this new endeavour.

“Two years ago, I started thinking about how to build a system to let story be as variable as gameplay and still be awesome in the way story can be awesome,” he wrote.

“Could you have characters, conflicts, and dialogue that could end not in 100 states, not in 1,000, but in X to the Y states? Goodbye linear, hello geometric! And that’s the new big thing that my colleagues and I have been working on at our yet-unnamed new studio.”

According to the new blog post, Levine’s team has since “made huge inroads into our design” which aims to “make a flexible narrative that is broadly replayable and strongly adaptive to player choice”.

Levine referenced the illusion of choice presented by traditional narratives in video games, a subject he tackled head on in the first BioShock. “You really don’t have a choice,” he said of narratives in games. “When it comes to player choice in narrative, our medium is limited indeed.”

Games like Civilization, XCOM and Minecraft so offer real choice, he added, but they don’t provide the same opportunities for storytelling as traditional narratives do. Even games like Dragon Age with branching paths and world states aren’t that flexible, Levine opined.

The full post is a pretty interesting read, and Levine has a lot of praise for Shadow of Mordor’s approach.

As such, it’s not clear what these positions vacant mean. There are a couple of possibilities. First, Levine’s new team may be continuing under the Irrational Games banner, or simply using its website until it has its own. Second, 2K may be hiring staff to continue legacy support for existing Irrational games products. Third, 2K may have decided to appoint new leaders and continue Irrational Games.

I’m betting on option one. We’ve asked 2K to fill us in on what’s going on, but don’t expect a reply till tomorrow at the earliest, unfortunately.

BioShock Infinite: Complete Edition will be available from November 4, Take Two revealed in its financials today.

The pack includes the core game plus shooting challenge pack Clash in the Clouds and both episodes of Burial at Sea.

It also grants various DLC packs previously exclusive to various bonuses and special offers – the Industrial Revolution Pack, Upgrade Pack and the Early Bird Special Pack.

The PS3 and Xbox 360 re-release is not coming to PC, 2K told Polygon, and will not be available digitally. It’ll set you back $40 or local equivalent.

If you’re yet to try BioShock Infinite this may be a hand way of grabbing it. It’s worth checking out just because it’s the now-disbanded Irrational Games‘ swansong, if nothing else.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/10/30/bioshock-infinite-complete-edition-release-date-announced/feed/0BioShock: Infinite is getting the Complete Edition treatmenthttps://www.vg247.com/2014/09/22/bioshock-infinite-complete-edition-listed-on-amazon-and-gamestop/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/09/22/bioshock-infinite-complete-edition-listed-on-amazon-and-gamestop/#respondMon, 22 Sep 2014 15:36:51 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=492649BioShock Infinite is apparently getting a package that includes the base game plus all of DLC for old-gen consoles.

UPDATE: 2K has confirmed to Gamespot that BioShock Infinite Complete Edition will be coming to Xbox 360, PS3 and PC later this year.

“We can confirm that the BioShock Infinite Complete Edition is coming to Xbox 360, PS3, and PC later this year, and we will be sharing more information about it very soon,” 2K said.

ORIGINAL STORY: Dubbed ‘The Complete Edition’, this listing has not been officially announced by 2K, but was rather noticed by Joystiq.

The listing appears on both GameStop and Amazon.ca for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, priced $40.

The product listing mentions a release date of November 4, and adds that the package includes all the previously released DLC, that being Clash in the Clouds, the Columbia’s Finest upgrade pack and both episodes of Burial at Sea.

There’s also no word on a PC or current-gen release.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/09/22/bioshock-infinite-complete-edition-listed-on-amazon-and-gamestop/feed/0Did FOX News just rip off the BioShock Infinite logo?https://www.vg247.com/2014/07/03/fox-news-bioshock-infinite-logo-did-just-rip-off/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/07/03/fox-news-bioshock-infinite-logo-did-just-rip-off/#commentsThu, 03 Jul 2014 08:43:01 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=481423BioShock Infinite’s star-spangled logo seems to have been re-purposed by FOX News in a situation that its creator Ken Levine has dubbed ironic.

Kotaku reported that the logo was used during the FOX news broadcast above, which ironically adorned an interview with Texas Governer Rick Perry regarding immigration.

Here’s the game logo:

BioShock Infinite was, of course a game about race and class division among many other things, and saw Columbia’s residents worshipping the American founding fathers almost like gods. Has your palm touched your face yet?

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/07/03/fox-news-bioshock-infinite-logo-did-just-rip-off/feed/5BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea offers three original tracks for free downloadhttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/31/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-offers-three-original-tracks-for-free-download/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/31/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-offers-three-original-tracks-for-free-download/#respondMon, 31 Mar 2014 01:27:04 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=460926BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 tidies up and closes the series to date, and as a way to say farewell to the franchise Irrational Games has released three new extended songs from its soundtrack.

Visit the link above to download or stream the songs, and to read about their origins.

Irrational Games is disbanding, with leader Ken Levine forming a new, smaller team, so although BioShock may continue this is end of a chapter in the franchise’s lifetime.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-launch-trailer-marks-todays-release-watch/feed/0BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea 2 requires two downloads on Xbox 360 due to size, says Irrationalhttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-requires-two-downloads-on-xbox-360-due-to-size-says-irrational/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-requires-two-downloads-on-xbox-360-due-to-size-says-irrational/#commentsTue, 25 Mar 2014 09:30:18 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=459415BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – episode two developer Irrational Games has confirmed that the DLC consists of two downloads on Xbox 360 due to file size.

While the studio has confirmed that the DLC weighs in at between 6-10GB depending on which platform you opt for, it’s not quite clear why you’ll need to download the content in two parts on Microsoft’s console.

Any guesses?

BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – episode two rolls out on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 from today.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-requires-two-downloads-on-xbox-360-due-to-size-says-irrational/feed/1BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – episode 2 reviews drop, get the scores herehttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-reviews-drop-get-the-scores-here/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-reviews-drop-get-the-scores-here/#commentsTue, 25 Mar 2014 09:04:04 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=459378BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 reviews have started emerging light bathyspheres bursting forth from the choppy deep, so we’re using out critical dragnet to scoop all of them up for your pleasure. Irrational’s final DLC is out from today on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.

Got a score we’ve missed? Paste it below and we’ll add it when we get a spare second.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-reviews-drop-get-the-scores-here/feed/5BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea 2 delivers a scrappy end to the saga – opinionhttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-delivers-a-scrappy-end-to-the-saga-opinion/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/25/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-delivers-a-scrappy-end-to-the-saga-opinion/#respondTue, 25 Mar 2014 09:00:09 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=459190BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 takes us back to Rapture one last time to round-off Booker and Elizabeth’s story. Dave Cook finishes the final DLC and comes away confused and somewhat disappointed.

”There is one horrible scene in particular that made me squirm and lose all hope for Elizabeth, as she desperately tries to think of a way out. She once had all the answers and used them to her advantage, but now she is vulnerable and lost. That’s both powerful and at times, quite depressing.”

Narrative ambiguity is a curious thing. As we observed from the Mass Effect 3 ending uproar, it’s a matter that splits opinions across the board. Some like to be told explicitly what happens to a game’s key players before the credits roll, while others like some elements left to their imagination. This is a personal choice, and it’s one that surfaces again in this, the second DLC episode from Irrational Games.

Burial at Sea – Episode Two opens directly after the events of the first instalment, with Comstock – who had been posing as Booker to escape his guilt – lying dead at the hands of a Big Daddy. We learned that Elizabeth was systematically travelling to all of the alternate timelines created throughout the events of BioShock Infinite and slaughtering each incarnation of Columbia’s ruler one by one. With no more Comstock’s left to slay, why then is Elizabeth back in Rapture? What unfinished business does she have there?

This is just one of several mysteries threaded throughout Irrational Games’ swansong, and like its parent title, Burial at Sea’s conclusion is an almighty head-scratcher that will likely dance a jig all over your brain as you struggle to comprehend what, exactly, just happened. Most of the outcome is clear yet, in true series fashion, there are unanswered questions that may either irritate or excite you depending on your approach to ambiguity.

One thing is clear; Elizabeth is back in Rapture again after an undisclosed time away, and has no recollection of why she came back. She awakens with Atlas standing over her, and for reasons I won’t reveal here, they forge an uneasy alliance to each get what they want. Her ability to open tears has also become – at first – inexplicably stunted, so she has to rely on stealth and gunplay to reach her goal, and while the chance to see the world through Elizabeth’s eyes is welcome, the same cannot be said for the sneaking mechanics.

”BioShock Infinite’s final hour simply falters due to its limp stealth play.”

They’re simply ineffective and prone to failure. By sneaking up on a Splicer you can knock them out with a swift Air-Grabber blow to the head, but all too often I was able to do this while the enemy was looking directly at me. You can see how aware they are of your presence by a ‘spidey-sense’ marker above their head. Once the gauge fills, you are detected, but the rules are often unclear. In most situations I was able to noisily run up to a Splicer and clobber them before the bar filled without penalty.

Despite there being a sound mechanic – which alerts foes whenever Elizabeth treads on glass or in water – nearby enemies rarely seemed to hear me battering their buddy over the head just a few steps away. Your stealth prowess is bolstered further by a new Plasmid called Peeping Tom that enables the player to see enemies through walls and become invisible for a short while, which is useful for slipping past the DLC’s patrolling Big Daddy, or skirting around rotating auto-turrets. It’s a neat power.

The same cannot be said of Ironside, which is another new Plasmid that grabs incoming bullets out of the air before adding them to your inventory. It’s fun to use and is similar to the Vortex Shield ability in Titanfall, but I was never really that bereft of ammunition, not when I could easily take out Splicers with melee attacks. As such, it felt like a weak addition, while returning Plasmids Possession and Old Man Winter fill out the power set. They’re each as useful as ever when coupled with Elizabeth’s new crossbow weapon.

”When it’s a BioShock game it’s absolutely acceptable and at times intriguing, but as a spiritual nod to Levine’s work on Thief it simply can’t stack up.”

This slick new toy is actually great fun, and comes with a few bolt types. The first is sleep darts, which as you’d imagine, knocks out foes on impact. I never actually witnessed any Splicers waking back up however, but I feel I may have moved on to new areas before this happened. Fellow enemies will go on alert if they come across one of their slumbering chums, although you can just as easily knock them out if they get too close. You also have gas bolts that create an area-of-effect sleep attack, and noisemakers which cause Splicers to walk away and investigate.

One of the DLC’s more interesting quirks is the ability to see objects in the world through Elizabeth’s learned disposition, with all of her book smarts and technical knowledge. So now, instead of simply asking her to pick a lock as before, you are treated to a basic lock-picking minigame that can either raise alarms if botched, or award you with more noise-makers if you hit a special pin. It’s both inoffensive and simple, but feeds into other story points that see Elizabeth explaining complex scientific jargon, complete with a quaint schematic art style.

What’s interesting here is that her explanations are sign-posted often in this manner to underline her high intelligence, but later on you start to feel that all of her knowledge and visions of different universes – with all of their variables, constants and outcomes – are worthless when facing a threat comprised of raw muscle that cannot be reasoned with. There is one horrible scene in particular that made me squirm and lose all hope for Elizabeth, as she desperately tried to think of a way out. She once had all the answers and used them to her advantage, but now she is vulnerable and lost. That’s both powerful and at times, quite depressing.

As you flick between Rapture and Columbia, you’ll piece together new insight into the creation of Songbird and why the Big Daddies are so attached to their Little Sisters, constantly witnessing familiar themes that are largely focused on parental attachment. One scene in Fink’s lab comes close to nailing the same sense of profound revelation you may have felt while taking a golf putter to Ryan’s skull, while another forces you to reappraise everything you knew about the original BioShock. The latter left a sour taste.

I like that Levine has tried to retrofit new mystery into the first game, but this goes back to what I was saying earlier about ambiguity and disclosure. Some mysteries are most effective when they’re left unsolved, where any attempt to further clarify or expand on the matter reduces its impact. Your understanding of the 2007 original may change after the climax although whether or not you take the bait is entirely dependent on how willing you are to further suspend your disbelief. I can see this ending being picked apart for months to come.

That’s my interpretation of the complex plot of course, but all thematic musing and debate aside; BioShock Infinite’s final hour simply falters due to its limp stealth play. It’s laid out like a core mechanic, but it handles like a wonky sneaking section in so many other shooters. To its credit, the campaign is much longer than that of the previous episode, and does a great job of keeping the narrative tension and body-count high. Going back to Columbia for a while is a nice way of bringing things full circle, and the meat of Irrational’s gunplay is still adequate enough.

By the end I felt I had just played an episode of Lost, but one of those utterly bewildering ones made long after JJ Abrams had left the show, leaving his subordinates to some-how piece together all of those initial, dangling story threads. When it’s a BioShock game it’s absolutely acceptable and at times intriguing, but as a spiritual nod to Levine’s work on Thief it simply can’t stack up. My gut tells me that you should play this one to get full closure on his over-arching story, but to be aware that you might not like what you see come the end.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/24/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-trophies-emerge-spoilers-inside/feed/0BioShock creator Ken Levine’s next project won’t be a linear narrativehttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/21/bioshock-creator-ken-levines-next-project-wont-be-a-linear-narrative/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/21/bioshock-creator-ken-levines-next-project-wont-be-a-linear-narrative/#commentsFri, 21 Mar 2014 20:55:03 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=458898BioShock creator Ken Levine said during a panel at GDC 2014 that his next title won’t be a linear narrative as “narratively-driven games tend to have poor replay value.”

“Narrative doesn’t lend itself to systems,” he said. “I’m proud of what we did with linear narrative, but I’ve personally been doing it for over 19 years.

“The problem with narrative is that you sort of have to keep getting bigger and bigger and bigger. That gets time consuming. That gets expensive. And you’re devoting years and years of your life to this one sort of big moment. You ship the game, and it comes out, and people play the game and it’s 12 hours long and people have a great experience and you see cosplayers and fans for years like that, but you don’t have that constant engagement with the audience.

“Linear narrative puts a boundary between the developer and the audience.”

Levine he wants to create a “narrative-driven experience where the narrative elements are non-linear and interact with each other.” In theory, he wants all narrative elements to trigger off player actions – or narratively open-ended, if you will.

While this sounds a bit convoluted, Levine doesn’t want it to get to that point.

“You’re going to have to balance these things off one another, but they’re all going to be transparent to you. We’re going to have to have a limited number of them so you can track them all and it doesn’t become a giant spreadsheet that overwhelms you,” he said.

Levine announced in February he was closing down Irrational Games and 2K would retain the BioShock property.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/21/bioshock-creator-ken-levines-next-project-wont-be-a-linear-narrative/feed/5BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 screenshots star Elizabethhttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/19/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-screenshots-star-elizabeth/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/19/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-screenshots-star-elizabeth/#respondWed, 19 Mar 2014 15:29:03 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=458058BioShock Infinite: Burial At Sea – Episode 2 arrives on March 25 for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and to prep you for release nest week, below you will find three new screenshots. The content is part of the Season Pass, but will cost you $15 if you do not own it.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/19/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-screenshots-star-elizabeth/feed/0BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 team discuss their contributionshttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/11/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-team-discuss-their-contributions/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/11/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-team-discuss-their-contributions/#respondTue, 11 Mar 2014 00:56:49 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=455484BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 was the last piece of content produced by Irrational Games before it was dissolved. In this video, the team discusses – and shows off – the work it is most proud of.

The video is tagged #IrrationalJobs, a movement designed to help laid-off members find new positions. That probably matters less to you than the fact that new environments, gameplay and artwork is shown in the video, but it’s good to see 2K’s efforts continuing.

BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 launches on March 25, and is included in the game’s season pass.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/11/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-team-discuss-their-contributions/feed/0Irrational Games job fair supported 75 former staffers, 57 studios attendedhttps://www.vg247.com/2014/03/01/irrational-games-job-fair-supported-75-former-staffers-57-studios-attended/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/01/irrational-games-job-fair-supported-75-former-staffers-57-studios-attended/#commentsSat, 01 Mar 2014 18:34:18 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=452782The job fair Irrational Games held on February 26 for the 75 employees laid off due to its closure, was attended by 57 different game studios, an Irrational representative has told Polygon. The companies which attended included external studios, and other subsidiaries of Take-Two. Studio boss Ken Levine said at the time of Irrational’s closure he wanted to give former staffers as “much support” as possible This included “financial support,” as well as the job fair.
]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/03/01/irrational-games-job-fair-supported-75-former-staffers-57-studios-attended/feed/1BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 contains 1998 Modehttps://www.vg247.com/2014/02/27/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-two-contains-1998-mode/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/27/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-two-contains-1998-mode/#commentsThu, 27 Feb 2014 17:46:24 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=452334BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2’s 1998 mode has been revealed by Irrational Games.

The mode follows 1999 Mode which was part of the core BioShock Infinite games as the hardest difficulty to play.

The mode will task players with completing the DLC using only non-lethal methods.

“In Burial at Sea – Episode 2 we put a focus on balance and stealth mechanics,” said Ken Levine. “As we were developing this new style of gameplay, we started to see people self-impose non-lethal playthrough’s.

“Given the fan reception of 1999 Mode, we thought it would be cool to give them another way to play Burial at Sea that challenged their mastery of stealth tools.”

The content is included as part of the Season Pass or can be purchased separately when it launches on March 25.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/27/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-two-contains-1998-mode/feed/1BioShock Vita status unknown, analysts feel Irrational closure “hurts prospects for the franchise”https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/20/bioshock-vita-status-unknown-analysts-worry-irrational-closure-hurts-prospects-for-the-franchise/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/20/bioshock-vita-status-unknown-analysts-worry-irrational-closure-hurts-prospects-for-the-franchise/#commentsThu, 20 Feb 2014 20:06:57 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=450336With the closure of Irrational Games, the fate of both BioShock Vita and the franchise as a whole is rather uncertain, according to analysts and “no updates” regarding the long-awaited Vita version of the first entry in the series.

Speaking with CVG, a 2K representative told the site there was “no update” available regarding the status of BioShock Vita.

Last word on the game came from Irrational Games boss Ken Levine himself in August, when he said the project had yet to be greenlit.

Meanwhile, Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter feels the franchise itself is in trouble now that the studio has closed, however, he doesn’t see a possible lack of BioShock games in the future hurting Take Two’s worth.

“It hurts the prospects for the franchise long term,” said Pachter to GI International. “The game wasn’t coming out again until 2018 or so, meaning that it isn’t really a big deal to the company’s valuation.”

IDC research manager Lewis Ward doesn’t feel the closure means the last of BioShock, as Take-Two owns the IP. The company will just “farm out the next installment in the 2015 time frame.”

“I think the news is very much mixed. BioShock has proven itself to be a great franchise, albeit primarily when Levine is at the helm,” added James Hardiman of Longbow Research. “Levine created the original BioShock and BioShock Infinite, two of the best reviewed games of all time, but was not involved in BioShock 2, which was generally considered to be a bit of a disappointment.

“So with Irrational no longer involved with BioShock, there is certainly the risk that quality will suffer on the next sequel, although realistically, we probably shouldn’t expect that for another 2-3 years. The good news is the new studio that Levine appears to be building at Take-Two sounds awfully interesting.”

Levine announced last week he was “winding down Irrational Games,” to start a smaller, “more entrepreneurial endeavor at Take-Two.”

In “Designing the Bungie Animation Workflow”, Bungie’s Richard Lico will discuss how the studio animates character performances and will detail the process by showing the animation work which went into Maya. Raw animation footage will also be shown.

“Creating Bioshock Infinite’s Elizabeth” will feature Irrational Games’ Shawn Robertson discussing the “various systems and narrative techniques used to breath life into Elizabeth,” per Gamasutra. Roberts will also show examples of early game builds and provide tips on using art, complex character-centric game systems and narrative in order to create a characters.

Finally, Final Fantasy 14 director Naoki Yoshida will discuss the design process of Final Fantasy 14 from it’s rocky start through its re-release as A Realm Reborn.

GDC 2014 takes place March 17-21 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/19/gdc-2014-talks-for-destiny-bioshock-infinite-final-fantasy-14-announced/feed/0Take-Two wins with Irrational Games closurehttps://www.vg247.com/2014/02/19/take-two-wins-with-irrational-games-closure/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/19/take-two-wins-with-irrational-games-closure/#commentsWed, 19 Feb 2014 10:15:37 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=449761The Bioshock publisher axes an unprofitable business but keeps the cherry-picked talent and the valuable brands – one of which is Ken Levine himself.

When Ken Levine announced he was closing Irrational Games last night it came as a shock to everyone watching the games business. A creative like Levine is much-loved by fans and peers, and he and his team have produced an enviable collection of games over its seventeen years. Pulling the plug after the release of the critically divisive but 4 million plus-selling Bioshock Infinite seemed the last thing that he and his publishing partners at Take-Two would, or should, do.

“If Levine really had the influence at Take-Two that his actions are suggesting, he could have also had the pull to reorganise Irrational Games into a coherent and slimline development team that would exist following his departure.”

According to his statement, Levine is starting a new business with 15 members of the Irrational team, while the rest of the studio are let go. They will be well looked after in their bid to find new work; there are opportunities within 2K Games and other studios in the area – most of which are most likely scouring LinkedIn and hanging around local bars to grab the exceedingly talented staff in Boston right now.

But still, their boss just sacked them and started a new company with his old business partners.

The triple-A games business is increasingly tough and the period between current and new consoles leaves studios previously at the top of their game crushed in the transition. But this particular case doesn’t seem to be a result of market factors – at least not on the surface. According to Levine, this decision is his own. A move to “refocus my energy on a smaller team with a flatter structure and a more direct relationship with gamers. In many ways, it will be a return to how we started: a small team making games for the core gaming audience.”

The reality is that Irrational Games – which is wholly owned by Take-Two – isn’t closing down as Levine steps in to save 15 jobs. He’s not walking away to start afresh like Peter Molyneux did with Lionhead, or Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka did when they left Bioware. Those moves were about going it alone but leaving a legacy business to continue creating games. They have become studios that exist and produce in their own right, they can function perfectly well after the departure of their founders. There’s no real mention of it, but Levine is implying that Irrational Games will not survive without him, so selfishly or selflessly, the studio must close.

If Levine really had the influence at Take-Two that his actions are suggesting – to be able to downsize the team and close the doors – he could have also had the pull to reorganise Irrational Games into a coherent and slimline development team that would exist following his departure. But no, Irrational was due to close regardless of its founder. Through some smart negotiation, Levine now gets his dream team and starts afresh.

He doesn’t even need to raise start-up funds because he’s being bankrolled by his old publisher.

It’s Take-Two that is the real winner here. The publisher gets to keep the Bioshock franchise, a brand that has generated $500 million in retail sales. There are questions about its viability in the triple-A market now, but it’s still a valuable name to hold on to. We can expect a reboot within the next couple of years.

“Take-Two gets to keep Ken Levine and his cherry-picked band of talent, and at the same time jettison the costly team at Irrational Games.”

Take-Two also gets to keep Ken Levine and his cherry-picked band of talent, and at the same time jettison the costly team at Irrational Games. Studios are expensive to run, especially those that take years to make a single-player first-person shooter. In the ruthless publishing business, closing unprofitable studios makes headlines, but more importantly raises stock prices.

Perhaps most importantly Take-Two also gets whatever it is Ken Levine and his team will work on next. For the publisher it’s too expensive to have a big studio like Irrational poncing around with new ideas and being creative when they could be churning out a sellable product and improving 2K Games’ bottom line. Much better for the business to axe what it sees as chaff and keep a smaller experimental team behind.

Take-Two gets to keeps Ken Levine and Bioshock, both of which are much more valuable brands than Irrational Games ever was.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/19/take-two-wins-with-irrational-games-closure/feed/7Ken Levine shuttering Bioshock studio Irrational Gameshttps://www.vg247.com/2014/02/18/ken-levine-shuttering-irrational-games/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/18/ken-levine-shuttering-irrational-games/#commentsTue, 18 Feb 2014 17:41:36 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=449597In a statement issued on the homepage of the company’s official site, BioShock creator Ken Levine says he will be closing down the BioShock Infinite studio soon, with most of its staff being laid off in the process.

“I am winding down Irrational Games as you know it. I’ll be starting a smaller, more entrepreneurial endeavor at Take-Two,” Levine wrote. “That is going to mean parting ways with all but about fifteen members of the Irrational team. There’s no great way to lay people off, and our first concern is to make sure that the people who are leaving have as much support as we can give them during this transition.”

Levine had said as recently as October that the possibility for Irrational to produce a new Bioshock title still existed. Now, Levine and those folks he’s bringing with him to this Take-Two sponsored startup will look more closely at story and reaplayability in new game projects.

“In time we will announce a new endeavor with a new goal: To make narrative-driven games for the core gamer that are highly replayable. To foster the most direct relationship with our fans possible, we will focus exclusively on content delivered digitally.

“When I first contemplated what I wanted to do, it became very clear to me that we were going to need a long period of design. Initially, I thought the only way to build this venture was with a classical startup model, a risk I was prepared to take. But when I talked to Take-Two about the idea, they convinced me that there was no better place to pursue this new chapter than within their walls. After all, they’re the ones who believed in and supported BioShock in the first place.”

Meanwhile, 2K will take over the BioShock property completely moving forward.

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/17/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-2-gets-behind-the-scenes-video-watch-here/feed/0Irrational giving out BioShock hats for Team Fortress 2https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/08/irrational-making-bioshock-hats-for-team-fortress-2/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/08/irrational-making-bioshock-hats-for-team-fortress-2/#respondSat, 08 Feb 2014 17:07:45 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=446812The DLC season pass for BioShock Infinite now provides an extra perk: some new hats and a doll for Team Fortress 2. BioShock creators and caretakers Irrational Games have announced on their blog that in the near future season pass holders will receive a Ben Franklin mask, a George Washington mask and a Mister Bubbles doll in their Steam inventories. See below for a look at this stuff.

These items will only be included with the season pass through March 25, which is both the day Burial at Sea part 2 will become available and the last day of the first year of BioShock Infinite’s release — in the US it came out on March 26, 2013. #symbolism

]]>https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/08/irrational-making-bioshock-hats-for-team-fortress-2/feed/0BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea – Episode 2 DLC to last up to six hourshttps://www.vg247.com/2014/02/05/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-dlc-to-last-up-to-six-hours/
https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/05/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-2-dlc-to-last-up-to-six-hours/#commentsWed, 05 Feb 2014 00:29:20 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=445881BioShock Infinite’s next story DLC, Burial at Sea – Episode 2, will last up to six hours on a completionist run through, according to a tweet from Ken Levine. This news should please those who found the first episode at bit short; even exploring thoroughly, it was only a couple of hours long. We don’t have a release date for the DLC yet, which is unfortunate, as this Burial at Sea: Episode 2 teaser trailer made me bang my spoon on the table in impatience and send an all-caps email to my local 2K PR rep.
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